To Live Outside the Law

Caught by Operation Julie, Britain's Biggest Drugs Bust

About the book

'Listen, Leaf,' Pritchard said, 'the hash is neither here nor there. You're in a lot more trouble than possession of a bit of dope. You've got big problems, man... big problems.' He looked at me with something akin to sympathy. 'How did you get into such a fix?'I'd been asking myself the same question.Operation Julie in 1977 remains Britain's biggest ever drugs bust. The work of eleven police forces, it resulted in the break-up of one of the largest LSD co-operatives in the world, the arrest of 120 people and, according to reports, the seizure of six million trips' worth of LSD crystal, valued at £100 million. Overnight, the price of a tab went from £1 to £5.This is the first insider account of how it felt to be caught up in - and by - Operation Julie.

About the author

Twenty-eight years after his release from prison Leaf Fielding has been a teacher in Spain and a philanthropist, setting up a home for orphans in Malawi. He now sells organic produce in the region of the south of France where he lives.